Orchestration [that] has a Straussian depth and complexity, swept along by a romantic undercurrent that is enthralling but unpredictable — Christopher Lambton, BBC Music Magazine

Esteemed Scottish-American composer Thea Musgrave CBE will celebrate her 100^th birthday in 2028, a centenary that represents one of the most important musical careers of the 20^th and 21^st centuries. She has earned many honorifics and awards over seven decades of composition, including two Guggenheim Fellowships, the 2018 Ivors Classical Music Award, The Queen’s Medal for Music and honorary membership in the Royal Philharmonic Society. She continues to compose fresh and exciting work marked by technical precision and a strong sense of drama; her 2019 Trumpet Concerto was lauded by Alison Balsom as one of the “top five trumpet concertos of all time." Likewise, her earlier works continue to excite audiences and critics around the world. San Francisco Opera will mount Mary, Queen of Scots in October 2026, following its sold-out run at the English National Opera in London in 2025 and a run of six performances at Opera Leipzig at the end of 2023.

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In the lead-up to her centenary, a number of landmark funds to support new music-making in the UK and US have been established in Thea’s name. In April 2025 the Royal Philharmonic Society launched the RPS Thea Musgrave Fund, which introduced two new initiatives: the RPS Thea Musgrave Composition Grants and RPS Thea Musgrave Performance Grants. The recipients were announced in November 2025 and awarded a total of nearly £50,000. Applications are now open for 2026. In the United States, New Music USA and Chamber Music America each recently received endowed gifts of $250,000. At New Music USA, the endowment supported the creation of the Thea Musgrave Performer – Composer Collaboration Grant through their New Music Creator Fund. Chamber Music America created the Thea Musgrave Performance Fund. These funds are an important step in not only ensuring the legacy of an important body of work, but in fostering relationships between composers and performers, an artistic relationship that has always been central to Thea’s writing. Additional funds and opportunities will be announced in the coming months.